"Today, the average global temperature has increased by more than 1°C compared to pre-industrial values. Over the same period, atmospheric CO2 concentrations have risen from 280 to more than 400 ppm. At the current pace of emissions, the carbon budget that is left to stay below the 2°C target of the Paris Agreement will be depleted in a few tens of years. For the 1.5°C target, this budget will be exhausted before the decade is out. At the same time, the impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly apparent. In recent years Belgium has experienced persistently mild winters, recurring drought episodes and a succession of hot summers, culminating in the unprecedented temperature extremes recorded during the summer of 2019. These phenomena have already affected agricultural yield, mortality figures and labour productivity loss, among other."

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